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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Sport
Martin Domin

Drake loses $400,000 bet on Charles Oliveira vs Justin Gaethje fight at UFC 274

Rapper Drake lost more than $400,000 after betting on Justin Gaethje to beat Charles Oliveira at UFC 274.

Gaethje was the underdog going into the lightweight main event despite Oliveira failing to make weight on Friday. The Brazilian was stripped of his title and only Gaethje could be crowned champion in Arizona.

Drake was confident enough to stake $427,000 (£346,000) on a bet which would have won him over $1million but was left counting his losses when Oliveira locked in a rear-naked choke in the first round. Gaethje quickly tapped to ensure the 155lb belt remains vacant.

Oliveira will be granted the chance to win back his belt later this year with Michael Chandler and Islam Makhachev among his possible challengers. The former champion also called out Conor McGregor but the Irishman admitted he is unlikely to return to the lightweight division.

Drake's lost bet follows a similar one in March when he staked $275,000 on Jorge Masvidal to beat Colby Covington. It was another wager which would have seen him earn around $1million but Covington outpointed his bitter rival.

Canadian Drake, whose real name is Aubrey Drake Graham, can afford to lose the odd six-figure bet, however, given he has a net worth of over $250million. The 35-year-old is one of the world's biggest-selling artists.

Oliveira, meanwhile, insisted after his 11th successive UFC victory, that he remains the champion despite losing his belt on the scales. "This is a message to the entire division; I am. a problem for the entire division. I am enlightened, I am the champion, this is my title and it should be here," said Oliveira.

Should Drake stop betting on the UFC? Let us know in the comments section below

"Dana White, I don't care [who I fight next], I'm not going to choose. Hey, Conor McGregor, are you going to come back or are you going to run away?" He later added: "I said Conor McGregor was a good fight but when I was seventh in the rankings I called out all of these guys and none of them paid attention to me so let the matchmaker do their thing and let my team choose. The champion is Charles Oliveira so let them struggle to fight me."

McGregor responded via social media to say he is unsure about returning to the lightweight division having bulked up to 190lb during his recovery from the broken leg he suffered against Dustin Poirier last summer. The former two-weight champion has frequently called out 170lb champion Kamaru Usman who is due to defend his title against Leon Edwards.

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